"Wrong or not, what's done is done and we have to move on from there," Tyler said. "There must be a way to make amends, though."

"What about issuing a public apology? Maybe we call another press conference and you can apologize and praise the Navy for the great relationship our company has had with them in the past," Marc suggested.

Tyler shook his head.

"An apology like that would seem forced, too contrived. And apologizing to the government as a whole or just the Navy is too broad," Tyler thought out loud. "No, I pissed off one very powerful person for all this to happen, a person powerful enough to have influence to completely screw the company. But this person also has to have been closely associated with the space station project. A person who would really be angry that I publicly criticized..."

When Tyler thought about it like this, the answer seemed so incredibly obvious. But from the blank look on Marc's face, he knew the answer was not so apparent to his assistant.

"You don't know who I'm talking about?"

"No, sir. I'm sorry but I don't."

"George Marshall, you moron. Think about it. The President has control over so many things, especially so many things we don't even know about. If he was mad enough, he would only have to say the word and the Navy's deal with us would disappear. And the space station project was his idea. Hell, it seemed like he staked his whole political future on the thing."

"But what President doesn't get criticized? He can't go around and punish every person who's said bad things about him," Marc countered.

"No, but he didn't give everyone such a chance on national TV like he did for us."

"I'm still not so sure, Mr. Ainsworth. President Marshall seems like a level-headed man," Marc said. "Your space station proposal had just failed...err, been declined. Your father just passed away and the police were hassling you and spreading terrible rumors that you might have been involved in his death. The President has to understand that you were just going through-"

Tyler's thought process did not allow room to hear the rest of Marc's retort. He was convinced that President Marshall must be behind his company's recent failure. This explanation made too much sense, especially considering that he'd been running the business exactly how his father had before his 'untimely' death. That left only one question to answer.

"How can I speak privately with the President?" Tyler asked, cutting off whatever thought Marc had been in the middle of speaking.

"I'm not sure, sir. I don't think the President schedules random appointments," Marc said, stating the obvious.

Tyler stopped himself from yelling at his assistant, even though the man was clearly an idiot.

"Find out," Tyler demanded.

Marc took out his day-planner and a pen, ready to jot down his boss's instructions.

"I'll just go ahead and make a note of that, sir," the assistant said.

"I meant now!" Tyler yelled.

Marc hurried out of the room and left Tyler to think about what he would say to the President to make things better. I'm sure there will be an abundance of apologizing and ass kissing. Marc had not been gone for twenty minutes when he returned with an answer.

"A fund raiser."

"How can we spend hundreds of thousands of dollars putting together a fund raiser when the company is running out of money?" Tyler asked.

"No, sir, you don't underst-"

"I don't understand?" Tyler said, his voice beginning to rise in anger. "I do understand how expensive and how much work it is to put something like that together. We had to do it to raise funding for the space station proposal. This time, we don't even have a feasible cause to justify it."

"But-"

"What should we call it? The 'I'm-sorry-I-ruined-my-company-by-criticizing-you' fund-raiser? I'm sure the stockholders would love that one," Tyler said, directing his anger toward the wrong person. "Besides, the President only attends a few fundraisers a year and those are for reputable causes."

Marc dropped an open newspaper on Tyler's desk, causing some other papers to flutter to the floor. A headline was circled, which read: PRESIDENT TO ATTEND WEEKEND FUNDRAISER.

Of course, Tyler thought to himself. This would be the perfect opportunity. I can blend into the crowd for most of the night and then pick an opportune moment to approach the President and say a few things. I can keep it short and sweet, but I won't have to go through a whole big apology-presentation.

"How do I get in?"

"It's a $20,000-dollar per plate dinner. I could call around and get you a spot," Marc said.

"$20,000? I hope the food is good. Get me in."

James Armour walked quickly down the long hallway, knowing the two other members of the 'Inner Circle' were already waiting behind the last set of doors at the end. When he pulled his car to a stop in front of the log cabin in the middle of the Virginian forest, the familiar Presidential limousine was already parked outside. The log cabin looked very unassuming but only a handful of people knew that it doubled as a safe house for the President. It was only a ten-minute helicopter ride from the White House and was built in the event of a nuclear attack on the nation's capital. Most people assumed there were bomb shelters already in D.C. for such an attack but those would still be too close to the blast zone and not prove effective for running the country long-term. As long as the President survived the initial blast, he could take the short chopper ride to the cabin and live for an extended period of time in the underground bunker built ten stories below the surface.

Since the bunker had never been needed for its intended purpose, it also doubled as a meeting place that the President could use in secrecy. It was the ideal spot for the 'Inner Circle,' at least when lengthy discussions were needed that couldn't take place at the White House. The cabin had only been used by the 'Circle' once before, during the recruitment process of Neil Peterson. That had been the most serious maneuver made by the group at that time. That was also why Armour had been greatly surprised to hear Peter Mansfield direct him to the underground bomb shelter this time.

The President must have a lot to discuss, Armour thought during the entire plane ride to Washington. Or maybe that weasel Mansfield has actually talked him into changing companies for the space station. That better not be the case.

Peter Mansfield was always in favor of taking the extreme route, of getting rid of people whenever they showed the slightest flaw. The Chief of Staff was a dangerous man, especially since he had the President's ear at all times. In their telephone discussions with Wesley Maddox, Mansfield had let his displeasure be known, and it would not surprise Armour if he were trying to get rid of McNalley & Jones and their proposal altogether. Armour was ready to fight tooth and nail against Mansfield if that was the case.

Armour walked into the conference room and found President Marshall and Mansfield already seated at the large table. Marshall immediately stood up and walked over to his Secretary of Defense, warmly shaking hands with him and asking about his flight from the West Coast. Mansfield remained seated and did not even glance in Armour's direction. Marshall looked around the room, which seemed far too big for just the three men.

"Sure seems much emptier than the last time we were here," the President observed. The last time the 'Inner Circle' had met here, they had been joined by the life-departed Henry Wilson, the Earth-departed Neil Peterson and the sanity-departed Earl Ackerman. As Armour stood there and saw the two remaining members of the secret group, he could not help but feel that his allies were gone. He just hoped Marshall would think on his own and not listen to everything Mansfield said.

"Come, James. Sit down."

President Marshall sat at the head of the table, with Armour to his left and Mansfield on his right. Armour looked at the Chief of Staff but could not gauge a reaction from the man's poker face.

"I'm sure you're wondering why we're meeting here today," Marshall began, as if reading Armour's mind. "I believe there are some serious issues about the space station that we need to discuss, especially in light of recent failures by McNalley & Jones."

Uh oh, here we go, Mansfield thought. The beginning of the President's spiel did not sound promising.

"First of all, I'd like to hear both of your opinions on how we should proceed with the station," the President said, turning to Mansfield first. Mansfield stood from his chair and turned toward the President. He didn't seem to care if Armour listened to what he had to say.

In true Peter Mansfield-style, the Chief of Staff did not mince words. "We need a change in companies and we need it right away. This is obvious when you consider the progress, or lack thereof, made by McNalley & Jones. On top of that, I don't feel that Maddox character has nearly enough experience to see this thing through to the end. I don't know about you two, but I would prefer the leader of this project to be more concerned with getting the space station built than getting his picture on the news every night."

James Armour could not hold back an annoyed snort at the last comment but Mansfield did not stop speaking.

"There are plenty of other companies who could use the existing work completed by Maddox and his crew. Either of the two top three finishers should have no problem integrating the completed work into their plans. When you think about it, M&J after all of their failures are more or less back at the start right now. And if they couldn't succeed the first time, why risk the existence of humankind by giving them a chance to screw things up twice? If we wait too long, it might be too late for another company to start the space station and get it done on time."

Mansfield sat back down, ending his speech. Armour was eagerly ready to begin his defense of the current space station company but he waited to hear from President Marshall first.

"You certainly make some valid points, Peter," Marshall said. Luckily, his tone of voice did not give Armour the impression that the President agreed with his Chief of Staff. "What do you think, James?"

"I'm sure this will come as a major surprise," Armour sarcastically began, "but I totally disagree with Peter. Did McNalley & Jones have major problems in the beginning? Yes. Is everything running perfectly right now? No. But any problem that they've come across, they've dealt with, and Wesley Maddox gave me a strong impression that he was completely capable of seeing this through. I also think he would resent the accusation of being more concerned with media attention than the actual project. We all know how intrusive the media can be and how it's impossible to get out from under their magnifying glass."

"You don't see us giving interviews on a daily basis," Mansfield interrupted.

During his visit to the space station compound, Maddox had explained to Armour about the constant harassment he'd endured from the media. The project leader also explained that he answered questions only on rare occasions.

"Look, I don't feel like arguing over minor details," Armour began. "All I'm going to say is this: any company that attempts an endeavor of this magnitude will run into problems at some point. Building a space station this damn big in such a short period of time is not like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. All of the pieces aren't always going to fit together perfectly. But I think we should base our opinions on McNalley & Jones by the way they handle setbacks and the way they work through adversity. If we give up on them now and hand this project over to another company, who says the next guy won't screw it up as well. And maybe they won't be as efficient in dealing with their problems."

"Or maybe they will avoid problems altogether," Mansfield added. The old astronaut just sighed. It seemed that the President's right-hand man was more eager to start problems than solve them.

The two men waited silently as President Marshall pondered the final decision. Although the 'Inner Circle' never formally voted on issues, every major decision they ever made had gone in the direction of the majority's thinking. The outcome of McNalley & Jones's future lay in the President's hands.

"James is right on this one, Peter," Marshall finally said, surprising both men at the table with his decision. "Problems are always going to happen and our boys have shown they can handle the pressure when things go wrong."

"But sir-"

"I'm sorry, Peter. But I think you're overreacting on this one. Replacing this company isn't going to make the space station built better or quicker. Besides, the problems McNalley & Jones have faced could happen to anyone," the President said firmly. "No private company can pull off an operation like this without running into a few snafus. I know this is a major decision, one that affects our lives and possibly the fate of humankind, but sticking with this company is our best bet."

Armour smiled and nodded in agreement with the President. The Chief of Staff could not hide his angry sneer.

"But there is one change we must make in our approach with the space station project," President Marshall began. "Ever since McNalley & Jones won the contract and began to work, we've given them plenty of room to manuever on their own without interference. I agree with Peter that this company may not have been able to handle this huge responsibility on its own. Starting today, the three of us will be playing a bigger role in dealing with problems the project faces. Peter, do you have the list?"

Mansfield rummaged in a briefcase, pulled out a packet of papers and handed it to Marshall.

"I had Peter assemble a list of major problems associated with the project thus far," Marshall reported. Peter took out two more copies of the report, opening one to the correct page before sliding the other across the table in Armour's general direction. Without looking up to see the head of NASSA quickly leaf through the report, the President began with the top of the list of problems.

"First of all is the money issue," Marshall began. "Even though we originally projected an extremely high budget, it appears the final cost will be significantly higher than initial figures. So much money has already been blown on faulty aluminum and multiple 'drafts' of different space station pieces. At this point, I think we'll be lucky if the final budget ends up twice what we originally expected."

Mansfield whistled and shook his head, pretending this was the first time he was hearing this. It came as no shock to Armour that the Chief of Staff made a spectacle of his disapproval.

Marshall continued. "Unfortunately, I don't expect anything can be done to avoid the over-expenditures. Certainly we shouldn't worry about cutting costs on something like this. If we ultimately need to use this space station, the concept of money will be a moot point."

They touched briefly upon the topic of the aluminum shortage, deciding that they should look into cutting a deal with one of the few manufacturers overseas who made this material. The President then flipped through a few more pages of the report before reaching the subject concerning the mass resignation of the space construction crew assembled by Wesley Maddox. Again, Mansfield felt the need to whistle.

"Sir, the failure of this crew has much to do with the fact that proper space training was not provided," Armour interjected.

Armour might as well have thrown a juicy steak to a starving wolf. As he expected, Mansfield did not hesitate to take a bite.

"Isn't the astronaut-training facility run by NASSA?" he asked.

"You damn well know the answer to that," Armour said, trying to bite his tongue.

"So why didn't your people give that crew proper training?" Mansfield asked.

I don't have to answer to you, you cocky little... Armour took a deep breath and turned toward the President.

"Mr. President, the problem with this training crew is that they don't really need to be trained as astronauts. Yes, all of their construction work will take place in space. But formal astronaut training is only needed for astronauts, sir, not the construction crew."

"But don't many of your astronauts work in construction situations?" Marshall asked.

"Yes, sir, but not in this sort of capacity," Armour explained. "Our astronauts are more proficient at doing repairs than actual construction. In fact, the amount of construction done in the history of our space program is not close to the amount needed to complete our space station. In essence, the job of astronaut needs to evolve into a more proper job description: space construction worker.

"The team that quit was not being trained as construction workers. Their expertise in construction was put aside, unnecessarily replaced with more formal astronaut training. Most normal people cannot handle the rigors of such training. It's no wonder they all quit."

"So what do we do?" Marshall asked. "Put together another construction team and train them differently? Or use pre-existing astronauts and attempt to train them?"

"To be honest, sir, I don't know if we have the proper training knowledge or techniques to handle the situation. And there would still be a great possibility that this type of training would fail again," Armour answered grimly.

"Mr. President, you say I'm the one who overreacts all the time?" Mansfield asked. "Of course we will put together a new crew and train them. We have to if the space station will be built. This project is important and money is no issue so we can offer people millions of dollars to join the construction crew if needed. We can promise them all the money in the world if that's what they want. Enough money will motivate anybody to get a job done, no matter how difficult it might be. And if Peterson fails his mission, we won't even have to worry about keeping our end of the deals in the long run."

"That's where you're wrong, Peter," Marshall began. "Your logic is based on the assumption that Neil's mission is going to fail. But if his mission succeeds, which we all must pray for, then spending too much of the United States' money could cripple the economy. We can't just throw complete caution to the wind. It's true we must plan for the worst but we need to make sure that if the best case scenario happens and the comet is deflected, the country will still be in an equally advantageous position. The actual budget for the space station structure cannot be helped but we can't promise millions of dollars to raise a construction crew, especially if there is a chance the crew won't work out."

"I don't know what we can do then," Mansfield whined. "We can't put together a new crew because the proper training isn't out there. We can't use astronauts we already have because they don't have the proper training. What do we do, just ignore this whole part of the operation?"

As Mansfield spoke, Armour actually listened to what he had to say, and a thought began to form in his mind. Has the President been thinking the same thing all along? Has he been trying to lead us to this conclusion? The U.S. never really had the need for space construction because we never built anything major in space. But that doesn't mean somebody else hasn't.

"Maybe we need to include another country on the space station plans," Armour said. From the grin that appeared on Marshall's face, Armour knew he figured it out.

"Are you crazy? We can't do that after the 'American pride' angle we've sold the public about the space station," Mansfield argued. "What are we going to tell the people? 'Sorry, America isn't good enough to do this on our own. We need help to get the job done.'"

"James is right again," the President said. Marshall watched his top aide's jaw drop. "The people will understand."

"I can't believe this," Mansfield said, truly shocked. It had been a bad enough suggestion to hear from the nation's Secretary of Defense, but his head spun knowing that the President agreed.

"We can't allow our sentiments of American superiority to interfere with the continuation of humankind," Marshall said. "We are in a fight for humanity and that's more important than any nation's pride."

"But how can we expect another country to understand the importance of this space station? The rest of the world views our plans as an overindulgent science fair project, not as a savior of humanity. We couldn't possibly allow another country to join us blindly, without knowing the true reason for the station. How much information can we trust another country with?" Mansfield asked.

"I agree with what you're saying. We can't have the full cooperation of a country if they thought we were just building this station strictly for scientific purposes," Marshall said. "The only way we can include another country is if we tell them everything."

Armour knew the President was right. Sharing the secret might even allow another country to make their own plans to save more people. Armour had never been the biggest supporter of keeping the secret of Comet Clement strictly to the members of the 'Inner Circle' but until now, there had never been a solid reason to share it with others.

Mansfield, on the other hand, believed that knowing the secret and being a total exclusionist went hand in hand. He was afraid that giving this information to another country would lead to the news leaking out to the rest of the world, afraid that his amount of power over the situation would be cut dramatically. The look of disgust on his face told the other two men exactly what he thought of the idea.

"Peter, I know that telling anyone else is risky. We must be very careful in handling this situation but we can't afford to be too timid to share the knowledge of Earth's impending doom," the President explained, his voice calm, yet firm.

"Exactly what country did you have in mind?"

CHAPTER TWELVE.

June 15, 2013 Get up, lazy ass. Now isn't the time to take breaks.

Earl Ackerman ignored the voice inside of his head. Instead, he listened to the screaming voices of his muscles, which begged him to stay, lounging comfortably on his couch. It was hard to pinpoint exactly which part of his body hurt the most. Everything from his legs to his back and shoulders and arms were fatigued beyond the point of moving. Earl pushed himself extra hard all night. The dream he had of the comet's early arrival dominated his mind ever since he'd fallen asleep in his truck. He normally would've stopped working hours ago but the thought of having wrong information about the comet fueled his weak body to continue moving.

When he finally allowed himself to rest for 'for just a minute,' though, there was nothing that could convince his body to stand back up. Earl knew he was finished working for the night but the thought of crossing the living room, walking down the small hallway and passing out on his bed still seemed like too much effort. Instead, he remained on the couch in his living room, watching TV because he was too tired to even sleep.

Ever since Earl helped discover Comet Clement, the only channel he ever watched was CNN, especially after he'd been expelled from the 'Inner Circle.' The news channel was his main link to the three remaining members of the secret group. Earl always listened for any news about them that might have a deeper meaning to the story, a hidden meaning that normal watchers would not notice. The biggest story still took place in the Arizona desert. Building had commenced on the space station months ago and the story had been all over the news since. But in subsequent months, updates were scarce from the secretive facility. The leader of the project, a guy named Wesley Maddox, barely answered questions anymore and only gave vague answers. Recently, even those vague answers disappeared, replaced with footage of him walking right past the media stationed outside the fence of the compound.